A washing machine is a house appliance used for washing clothes, and a drying machine is a house appliance used for drying clothes. In recent years, washing-drying integral machines integrating functions of washing and drying have been widely used. In the following, for ease of illustration, the washing machine, the drying machine, and the washing-drying integral machine integrating the functions of washing and drying are collectively referred to as a washing machine.
The washing machines are generally classified into an impeller type of washing machines and a drum type of washing machines. In an impeller type washing machine, a motor shaft and a washing drum shaft are generally disposed vertically, and the washing machine is of a top-opening type. In a drum type washing machine, a motor shaft and a washing drum shaft are generally disposed horizontally, and the washing machine is of a top-opening type or a front-opening type. A conventional drum type washing machine is generally of the front-opening type, and is directly mounted on the ground for use. For such a front-opening type washing machine, a cloth feed opening is positioned in a low position, which causes a lot of inconveniences for a user to put clothes into the washing machine or taking clothes out of the washing machine.
Generally, each family has only one washing machine. In order to wash clothes of different types, the washing machine needs to be used or started for several times. For example, the clothes may be classified into adult's clothes, underwear, and children's clothes. For washing these clothes, the washing machine needs to be used twice, thereby, consuming a lot of washing time and energy. In addition, in consideration of energy saving, it is not preferred to use the large-scale washing machine in the prior art to wash a small amount of clothes. A washing procedure set in the large-scale washing machine generally consumes a large amount of water and a large amount of power.
Moreover, the expected amount of clothes in the washing procedure is large, so the washing time is long. In addition, washing procedures set in the large-scale washing machine generally are for general clothes, and may not be suitable for washing fine clothes such as underwear or children's clothes. Further, the large-scale washing machine is also not applicable to washing a small amount of clothes frequently. A consumer may collect clothes for days or more before washing clothes of an appropriate load. In consideration of health, it is profitless to place underwear, children's clothes and similar objects for a long time. If the clothes are placed for a long time, dirt will be adhered to the clothes and will be hard to be completely cleaned.
Therefore, on the basis of providing a conventional large-scale washing machine, the necessity of additionally disposing a small-scale washing machine with a much small capacity is increased. However, although the washing machine is small-sized, it is not preferred to dispose two washing machines in one family in consideration of space utilization. Therefore, some patents provide technical solutions:
For example, Chinese Patent Application No. 200810109942.8 entitled “Washing Machine” provides a washing machine that can wash or dry clothes. The washing machine includes a first washing drum, configured to accommodate clothes; a shell, the first washing drum being located in the predetermined space in the shell; a second washing drum, disposed in the shell, and configured to accommodate clothes in a manner of being separated from the first washing drum; and a supporting member, configured to support the second washing drum with respect to the shell, basically block the shift of the second washing drum due to the load of the second washing drum, and limit the vibration shift of the second washing drum in a predetermined amplitude. However, in the technical solution, the two washing drums are not connected to each other, and a gap between the two is large, which increases the volume of the washing machine. Moreover, in the existing dual-drum washing machine, the first washing drum and the second washing drum are each connected to a separately disposed damping mechanism, which not only increases the number of parts of the washing machine, but also increases the volume and weight of the washing machine.
Therefore, a heretofore unaddressed need exists in the art to address the aforementioned deficiencies and inadequacies.